York House, Twickenham

York House is a historic stately home in Twickenham, London, England. It was first built in the 1630s and named for the Yorke family, who owned farmland in the area. The home was sold to Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester in 1656 and then to the son of Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon in 1661. It passed through a variety of owners, and, from 1864 to 1871, the Orleanist pretender Prince Philippe, Count of Paris lived at the house during his exile from France; he returned following the downfall of Napoleon III during the Franco-Prussian War. From 1896 to 1906, Philippe's son Prince Philippe, Duke of Orleans returned to living in the York House after the French Third Republic exiled his family. The last private owner, Ratan Tata, died in 1918, having left behind an Italian garden as his legacy. In 1923, the Twickenham Urban District Council acquired the house, which became the council's offices; in 1965, it came to house the Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council.